After my ALS diagnosis, exercise became ‘therapeutic movement’
I perform several mini-exercises throughout the day to keep myself moving
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The inspiration for this week’s column comes from a reader’s simple question: “How many mini-exercise sessions do you do a day?”
My quick reaction was to think I’d already written quite a bit on the topic of exercise and ALS, and I’d just send along a few links. But when I began searching, I discovered that, although I’ve written about the various ways I incorporate exercise into my life with ALS, I’d never offered the full details of my daily schedule, one that puts it all together. So I’m going to share that today.
I created the program shortly after I was diagnosed in 2010. ALS caused my body to move more slowly and limited my energy, meaning I couldn’t perform traditional exercise movements anymore. So, I had to reframe my entire concept of exercise.
Introducing my ALS exercise program
First, rather than setting aside extended periods of time, such as when I could teach a one-hour yoga class or spend 30 minutes going for a walk, I found that several preplanned moving breaks sprinkled throughout my day worked best.
These mini sessions not only give my energy levels time to recover, but they also help make up for all the incidental exercise I’m missing out on. Because my caregiver husband was now preparing my meals, making the bed, fetching the mail, and doing other household chores that used to be my responsibility, these mini-sessions kept my body moving.
Then, instead of thinking exercise, I thought therapeutic movement. What I do is a combination of physical therapy, range-of-motion exercises, and adapted yoga/Pilates stretches. As a former wellness and fitness instructor, these skills are familiar to me and come easily to mind.
Because ALS symptoms affect us differently and our fitness levels before having ALS vary, you should consult your doctor or physical therapist about how best to add exercise to your day.
My schedule goes like this:
- In bed, after waking up. Thirty minutes of stretching, rolling, knee pulls, and knee push-ups.
- Before breakfast. Fifteen minutes of chair yoga and breathing exercises.
- After breakfast, before sitting at the computer. Ten minutes of standing balance, leg strength, and chair squats.
- After lunch, seated or standing. Five minutes of arm exercises.
- On a rebounder. Ten to 15 minutes of bouncy walking and rocking.
- After dinner, on the floor. Thirty minutes of crawling, rocking, bridges, and stretching.
Whoa! When I read that list, even I’m impressed. But remember that this represents an ideal day. And who has those anymore? I consider myself lucky if I can connect two or three in a row. Life happens; there are interruptions, appointments, “feeling low” days, and more. If the day falls apart, at least I know I’ve done the first two mini sessions, and that’s good enough for me.
If you want to learn more, I invite you to leave a comment below. Or, share what you’re doing to add exercise to your day. Let’s keep moving. Because when we do, we’re learning to live well while living with ALS.
Note: ALS News Today is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of ALS News Today or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to ALS.
Institute of Physical and Sport Sciences
Very neat blog post.Really looking forward to read more. Awesome.
Laura Urbiha
I like to exercise in the pool and I’m fortunate enough to be able to get there once a week. Ideally I’d love to be able to go there 3x/week, however that isn’t an option right now. I must have a caregiver in the water with me, because if I happen to go under the water I can not get myself upright on my own! In the water I can do many things that I can no longer do on dry land, like standing upright (I’m normally bent over 90 degrees at the waist), kneeling down to stretch my legs and knees.
The pool I go to is only 4.5 feet deep at the deepest level with a sloped entrance (like walking into a lake). I’ve developed my own workout routine. After using the lift to get from my wheelchair into the pool, using foam barbells for balance, I go to where the water is only 3 feet deep and kneel down to stretch out my legs and knees and practice standing up from a squat position.
After I’m finished with this portion, I put on my Nekdoodle (a floatation device that keeps my head from going under water) while I do 20 lengths of the backstroke (arms only) trying to coordinate arms and legs together is too much for my brain to handle! lol
Following the laps, I go to the side of the pool at the deepest end and using the barbells for resistance I do a series of exercises (20 times per side) with my arm extended out to my side, I push the barbell under water and bring it down and in front of my body then raise it back out to the starting position. After that I push the barbell down along my side and then push it forward and then backwards exercising the biceps and triceps. (I can only do one side at a time because for some reason I’m really buoyant and can’t keep my feet on the pool bottom even when using only one barbell).
Then it’s on to the legs. I raise my leg out to the side and then forcefully bring it back down in front of my other leg. (20x) alternating sides. (With this exercise I’ve noticed a huge difference in the amount that I’m able to spread my knees apart)! Last is bringing my knee up in front and then forcefully kicking back behind me.
This is the workout that I’ve come up with that exercises both my arms and legs and keeps the range of motion in my shoulders. But honestly anything that you can do in the water will help keep you moving!
Dagmar Munn
Laura, thank you for sharing your water routine. I'm so impressed! When did you begin doing these?